


What a Time...

by blueberryjamcake



Series: Happy Life Happy Life [2]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Break Up, Derek is Bad at boundaries, Emotional Hurt, Flashbacks, Happy Ending, M/M, Mental Health Issues, Overprotective Stiles Stilinski, Post-Break Up, References to Depression, Sad Derek Hale, but really so is Stiles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:20:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26004070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blueberryjamcake/pseuds/blueberryjamcake
Summary: Derek reflects back on the hardest time. Set 17 years before "Us in Moments Unforgettable".(I do not own any of these characters.)
Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski
Series: Happy Life Happy Life [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1570777
Comments: 3
Kudos: 34





	What a Time...

It's all tense silence until... 

“Stiles.” Derek begs. “Baby, please don’t do this.”

Stiles winces where he stands by the empty kitchen sink. 

“I can’t do this anymore.” He says wiping down the counter, rearranging a mug on the drying rack, before turning to face Derek. 

“Why?” Derek asks as tears actually break through, which Stiles notices, surprised.

“Why?" Derek pleads again stepping closer to him. "What makes this time different?”

“Please let me do this, Derek”. Stiles says approaching closing the distance between them. 

Derek immediately grasps at Stiles in a desperate embrace, then moving his hands up to cradle Stiles’ face. Searching his eyes for a clue that this is all just a sick joke. He finds that it isn't. 

“No. I can’t. I won’t let you.” Derek says with all seriousness.

Stiles presses his forehead to Derek's. They breathe together. 

“You are my whole world”, Stiles says finally, “and I just can’t watch you hurt yourself anymore.”

Derek's hold of him only grows tighter as silent sobs escape him.

“You owe it to yourself to heal." Stiles continues. "It’s not fair that I get all the good and you get all the bad, sweetheart." 

Derek breaks at the pet name, fully collapsing onto Stiles who thankfully answers by wrapping Derek in his arms firmly.

“I love you so much”, he confesses into Derek’s cheek. “I love you so much, and I have to go because I want forever and everything with you and that’s not going to happen if you just keep letting yourself hurt."

“I swear sometimes it feels like you don't let yourself breathe unless I'm with you, and I want you to want to wake up in the morning, for more than just me. I can't be the only reason you will yourself to live anymore. Fuck, Derek, I need to know you have a reason to smile without me.”

Derek starts shaking his head. “But I can’t do life without you, it’ll kill me.”

“You can and it won’t. Derek look at me. Look at me.” Derek does. One pair of wet eyes meeting the other.

“There are so many people who want you well, and I feel like it's my fault... like I've gotten in the way of you seeing that. You’ve closed yourself off from everyone, and I know you’re scared to let more people in and lose them again, but you and I both know you can't control that and it’s keeping you from sharing your magic with everyone and with yourself.” Derek fights off a smile, but is unable to stop from rolling his eyes because that's what Stiles always tells him.

Stiles notices and beams back at him. 

“You’re really leaving.” Derek says as if finally seeing the truth. 

“Yeah," Stiles nods, "I am.” 

“For how long?” Derek asks, voice breaking. 

“That’s all up to you.”

“Fuck.”

“I know.” Stiles says, now stroking Derek’s hair.

Derek leans into the touch. “Where will you go?” 

“That’s not your business anymore” Stiles teases, breaking their embrace. 

“Asshole” Derek retorts, only it sounds more like "I love you". 

“I love you too. So much.” Stiles allows himself one more kiss to Derek’s crown before he pulls away as Derek staggers back to the counter, as if he no longer has the strength to hold himself upright. 

Stiles picks up his backpack and old duffel bag from the floor, and grabs Derek's favorite baseball cap from the coffee table, fitting it on his head as he opens the door and turns back to look at Derek.

"Erica and Isaac are going to come over later." Stiles' voice sounds smaller than Derek's ever heard it. "Can you promise me you’ll leave the door unlocked for them?”

Derek can only nod back and looks down, not wanting to remember what it looks like to watch his entire reason for being leave him. 

“Thank you.” Stiles says closing the door shut behind him.

××××××××××××××××

  
17 years later.

Derek Hale sits leaning his back to Stiles' front, freckled, tanned, lean arms encircling Derek’s shoulders. The sound of the waves meeting the shore in front of them is muted by the loud laughter and shrieks of their children running around with their cousins as their Uncle Scott chases them around. 

At the sight, Derek takes a deep breath. 

“You good?” Stiles asks kissing the side of his neck.

“Yeah”, Derek replies brushing Stile’s legs. “Just thinking.”

“About what?” 

“How glad I am that I let myself want this.” Derek confesses, shifting himself so he can look Stiles in the eye. 

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“I’m really fucking glad too.” Stiles says kissing his lips this time. 

“Watch your bleeping mouth Stilinski.” Erica interrupts from their right, gesturing at her two year old daughter, who is very much asleep in the arms of her father.

"Oh your one to talk", Stiles bites back "It's not even noon and you've already had a half a box of wine". 

"He has a point, babe." Boyd interjects, smiling as he continues to rub circles onto Lo's back. 

Derek lets out a laugh at Erica's look of shock and betrayal, and returns to reclining on Stiles, kissing his arm and closing his eyes as his partner and best friend begin their regularly scheduled debate on who is the most qualified parent. 

Unlike before, now deep in his bones, Derek knows that despite his life being more than he could have ever dreamed, it's all very much enough. 

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by "What a Time" by Julia Michaels feat. Niall Horan .  
> Have you watched their "Late Late Show" performance? Go do it right now, simply divine.
> 
> I was really excited to be inspired to write something again. As someone who wishes they allowed themselves more of a creative outlet, I'm just beyond jazzed to be able to add something more to my own little Sterek Universe, and get a bit more comfortable writing.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading, I'm beyond grateful for my work to be allowed a few minutes of your attention.
> 
> Hope you're taking care of yourself.
> 
> <3 <3 <3


End file.
